Chemically Bound
by Phoenix of Starlight
Summary: A science project fanfiction? Could it be? Yes, it's a dream come true. In which the author uses Belphegor, Fran, and others to teach about chemical bonding. NO ROMANCE. JUST CHEMICAL BONDING.
1. Chapter 1

**Chemically Bound**

**Introduction**

_*This story has been modified from its original form. Please ignore references to 'codenames' that were used in the original._

_~I'm running this science project by my reviewers before I turn it in on 5/11/2012~_

* * *

"All right, everyone!" called Fran, clapping his hands together. "Settle down!" When the group refused to do so, Belphegor, who was seated beside Fran, stood up, and things fell silent within moments.

"That's how a Bel does it!" he announced. Fran sighed, and folded his arms.

"Okay, so we are gathered here today because Agent Phoenix has a science project on chemical bonding."

"You've got to be kidding me," Hibari muttered. "Another project?"

"I know, I know," Fran sighed. "But this time, we can help out! Tsuna, get up here!"

The unanimous leader of the group, Tsuna, stepped forward. "Yeah?"

"I'm starting this with you," Fran replied. "We're all going to be assigned an element based on our personalities. Tsuna, you're pretty weak and pathetic, aren't you?"

"Only sometimes," Tsuna replied.

"Right, you're pretty weak. But every now and then, you display remarkable amounts of strength! And as such, I am assigning you to Hydrogen!" Tsuna sighed, and Fran continued, "Hydrogen only has one proton in the center and one electron surrounding it. However, it's also pretty dangerous, so I think it's right for you."

Tsuna, named as Hydrogen, went to sit down away from the group. Beside Fran, Bel stood up, and called out for Gokudera. The character quickly made his way over, and Bel thought hard. "You're not very nice to a lot of people, and you're known for being a bit of a loose cannon. That's why I'm gonna make you Chlorine."

"Wha- Chlorine?" Octupus shouted. "But...!"

"Ooh, good work, Belphegor," Fran commented. "Chlorine works perfectly for him. It's a toxic gas!" Gokudera reluctantly walked over towards Tsuna, but Fran shouted, "Hey! No bonding yet! Chlorine, go sit in that corner. If you get too close to Tsuna- I mean, Hydrogen, you're gonna make Hydrogen Chloride and kill us all!"

Chlorine sighed, and walked away from Hydrogen.

The proceedings continued. "Agent Hibari, you're awfully antisocial," Fran noted. "And so, I think it only appropriate that you represent our inert gas, Neon." Hibari shrugged, and walked away from the rest of the group.

"Okay, Xanxus, you're name is everything," Bel said with a lopsided grin. "You should be some sort of heartless element with a lot of valence electrons."

"Valence electrons?" Xanxus repeated, his eyes glinting dangerously.

"They're the electrons in the outermost ring of electrons. I'd say Oxygen is good for you, cause that would make you desperate to just tear two electrons away from some other poor, innocent element."

"Nice comparison, Bel," Fran noted. "On that note, Ryohei here is incredibly strong, and reacts nicely. I'd even call him magnetic. I'm callin' him Iron. But since Iron's number of valence electrons vary, let's just make sure he knows that for this project, he has two. Hear me, Ryohei?"

"I HAVE TWO WHATEVER-LECTRONS TO THE EXTREME!"

"Ooh, energetic," Bel commented. "That's iron for you. Who's next?"

Mukuro stepped forward, a creepy grin on his face, and Fran sighed. "Well, I suppose it can't be helped. I'm calling you Carbon."

"May I ask why?" Mukuro replied.

"'Cause you seem to pop up everywhere," Fran answered. "Go sit somewhere where you won't bond with anyone. You have four valence electrons, so I know that you can make a whole lot of bonds."

"Hey, Fran, what do we do with this guy?" Bel asked, pointing to Byakuran, who smiled and waved at them. "I was thinking he should be sucrose."

"That wouldn't be fair!" Fran protested. "Why should he be a compound while everyone else is an element?" Bel seemed confused. "Elements are only made of one kind of atom. But sucrose, also known as table sugar, is made up of twelve Carbon atoms, twenty two Hydrogen atoms, and eleven Oxygen atoms! One Byakuran is made up of twelve Mukuros, twenty two Tsuna fish, and eleven Xanxuss? I think not!"

Belphegor pouted. "Technically, a Byakuran IS-"

"That's just a codename, Bel. He'll be Sodium, another guy in Hydrogen's column. Go sit somewhere far away from everyone else, because you're crazy when it comes to being a dangerous, reactive metal, Sodium."

The other did so.

"All right, we'll pull in some other guys later if we get a chance, but in the mean time, let's go for a classic reaction," Fran said, clasping his hands together.

"We aren't going to be elements?" Belphegor pouted.

"Of course not. We're the hosts. Hydrogen and Oxygen, come out here!"

Xanxus and Tsuna stepped out, Tsuna looking extremely nervous. "Oh, hey, wait a second," Bel started. "Those two can't bond. Oxygen has six valence electrons, Hydrogen only has one. In order to become stable, Oxygen needs eight valence electrons."

"Exactly," Fran said, grinning. "I brought in a friend." A second Tsuna walked over, and Fran laughed. "If you have two Hydrogen atoms and one Oxygen atom..."

"Hydrogen Oxide?" Bel mumbled.

"Water, senpai, that's Hydrogen DI-oxide," Fran corrected. "Go on, Hydrogen. Get nice and cozy with Oxygen, like you're gonna take a picture with him." The two Hydrogen atoms shuffled towards Xanxus, and the Oxygen immediately grabbed on to both of their arms.

"Hydrogen and Oxygen are both nonmetals," Fran said, "so the bond they form is called a covalent bond. It's kinda weak. They're only being held together by those electrons that Oxygen wants and Hydrogen needs to be stable. If their bond was stronger, they might have been able to create a compound that was solid at room temperature. But since there's no real trust or affection in this bond, they're just a flimsy liquid."

"Pity," Bel sighed.

"Am I stable yet?" Xanxus asked.

"Yeah, pretty much," Fran chuckled. "Unfortunately, due to the Law of Conservation of Matter, you can't get rid of those little Hydrogen protons, so you're going to be sharing with them for the rest of your atomic lives."

"Which is pretty much forever," Bel added. "'Cause atoms don't die."

"Yup. It would take a decent amount of energy to get water to separate back into Hydrogen and Oxygen," Fran commented.

"I'd go for an electrical charge to get that going," Bel said. Fran nodded, but he gave the Bel a serious glance.

"Don't try it."

"I won't!"

**Introduction: End**

* * *

_So, this is for my A.T.O.M. (Advanced Topic of Mine) project in science class. We got to choose our method for expressing our knowledge on a certain standard, so naturally, I chose fanfictions._

_Please Review!_


	2. Carbon in all its Glory

**Chemically Bound**

**Carbon in All its Glory**

* * *

Fran and Agent Bel turned to Mukuro. "Hm," Fran hummed.

"Hm, indeed," Bel agreed. "You know how Carbon is."

"Sure do," Fran sighed. "Carbon will bond and bond again, over and over. Carbon is able to bond with itself, even, by sharing valence electrons with another Carbon. Since it only needs eight, it can bond with itself once, twice, even three times. That's why pure Carbon isn't exactly as big of a deal as other pure elements. Although, it IS a big deal when it's in the form of a diamond. Did you know, Bel? Carbons can form a soft graphite, as well as one of the hardest materials on Earth, diamond. All by bonding with itself. Usually, upon bonding with itself, it comes out in a crystal structure, kind of like salt. But when a compound with Carbon is burned and the Carbon in the bonds rearrange into pure Carbon, it comes out amorphus."

"Ama-what?" Bel giggled.

Fran rolled his eyes. "Amorphus. Instead of having a rigid, orderly pattern, the atoms are all over the place. It's like when you roast a marshmallow. The black stuff? That's Carbon. And since the reaction is kinda quick, it appears to be amorphus."

"Hey, you said that the Law of Conservation of Matter states that matter is never created or destroyed," Bel said, looking triumphant.

"And that law is as true as my hair color," Fran replied, "Remember that sucrose is made up of twelve Carbon atoms, twenty two Hydrogen atoms, and eleven Oxygen atoms. So marshmallows, being made up of a lot of sucrose, when roasted, will break down into Carbon, as well as Dihidrogen oxide."

"Didn't you say it was Hydrogen dioxide?" Bel asked.

"Yeah, I screwed up in the intro. The subscript between Oxygen and Hydrogen in the chemical formula for water belongs to Hydrogen."

"You made a mistake?" Bel giggled.

"Don't make a fuss over it, it rolled off my tongue like Carbon dioxide, which is one Carbon, two Oxygen," Fran grumbled. "As I was saying, sucrose, with a lot of heat, will decompose into pure Carbon, and water."

"I've never seen water when roasting marshmallows," Bel argued.

"Watch for a vapor next time," said Fran. "Anyway, we're off topic. Carbon makes up most 'organic compounds' on Earth. Y'know the term 'Carbon based life form.' Carbon."

"Yeah."

"It's a pretty useful thing," Fran commented, gazing at Mukuro. "Ready for your first bond?"

"Yes, sir," chuckled the fruit-headed element.

Four Tsunas walked out, and Fran took a step back. "Since we all love Hydrogen, these four can share each of their one electrons to make Carbon stable."

"Where did you get all this Tsuna?" Mukuro began to protest, but he relaxed when the Hydrogen eased in beside him.

"This bond is usually called Methane, or Carbon Tetrahydride, for us picky people," Fran said. "For those who don't know, it's a gas, and it's highly flammable. I've also seen people build columns of methane bubbles, and burn them."

"That sounds fun," Bel said.

"Thankfully, it IS fun, unlike hairdryers and toasters in water, but you always have to remember to be safe. Wear safety goggles," Fran noted. Bel rolled his eyes, but agreed. "All right, Methane, break it up," Fran said, shooing the Hydrogen away from Carbon. "Anyway, Carbon, being so awesome, can make a total of four bonds, and therefore can create molecules so complex that they make our heads pop."

"That sounds intense," said Bel. "What kind of complex molecules?"

Fran considered for a moment, then nodded. "Sucrose is one of them. There's also starch, and some synthetic materials such as plastic that are organic compounds made from Carbon. Carbon can also make many isomers-"

Bel began to giggle. "Watch your language, Fran, this is for Agent Phoenix, right?"

Fran sighed at his co-worker's immaturity. "An isomer is a compound that has the same amount of each type of atom as another compound, except the atoms are arranged differently. There are a lot of isomers for Carbon because of that ability to make so many bonds. Take Butane, for example. It has four Carbon atoms, and ten Hydrogen atoms. I'm afraid we might run out of atoms if we pull this off, but let's get three more of Mukuro out here." As requested, three more Carbon headed over, and Fran ordered them to stand in a line, holding hands. "All right, like this, the two Carbon on the end have already fulfilled one of their four possible bonds, and the two in the middle have two of four bonds finished. So, again, because we love Hydrogen and all it's simplicity, three Hydrogen go to each of the outermost Carbon, giving them a total of four out of four bonds, and two Tsuna to each of the innermost Carbon. That way, everyone's happy. With only two electrons total, Hydrogen is stable, and after making four bonds to create an outer shell with eight valence electrons, Carbon, too, is satisfied."

"So can you show us an isomer?" Bel said with a grin. Fran glared at him.

"Have at it," he said, gesturing to the Butane molecule. Bel's grin slowly vanished, but he determined that Fran would not outshine him, and he thought hard. He soon arranged the Carbon into a Y-formation, giving each of the outer atoms one bond while the center held three. The center atom made its last bond with a Hydrogen atom, and the remaining nine Hydrogen were distributed evenly among the three outermost Carbon atoms. The result was a stable isomer.

"Ha! Did it!" Bel cheered.

"Yeah, I guess," Fran sighed. "Now, how about we make some sucrose? Remember, that would be twelve Carbon atoms, twenty two Hydrogen atoms, and eleven Oxygen-"

"It's not happening," Bel answered.

"I know."

**Carbon Segment- End**

* * *

-.-' Wow. This has gotten more reviews in a day than my three other stories have in two weeks. Maybe I should be more educational. XD

Please Review!


	3. IonicMetallic Bonds

**Chemically**

**Bound Chapter 3**

Ionic/Metallic Bonds

* * *

It was at last the time for Sodium to come into play. Fran called the metallic element forth, then asked for Chlorine. The two elements, Byakuran and Gokudera, walked over, and Fran ordered them to hold hands. Once they were donig so, Fran bound their hands together with his shoelace in order to prove a point.

"NaCl, Sodium chloride, or, as I like to call you two, table salt."

"Salt?" Bel repeated. "Yay! Now, come stand on my lunch!"

"Bel, we're not doing that," Fran sighed. "This bond is between a metal and a nonmetal. Sodium has one valence electron, and Chlorine has seven. As such, they fit together perfectly. In fact, Sodium completely gives its one valence electron to Chlorine, allowing Chlorine to have a full, stable outer shell, and Sodium is made stable because beneath that one outermost electron was a full shell. Since elements have the same number of positive-protons as they do neutral-neutrons, giving away that negatively-charged electron makes Sodium charged positive, while Chlorine, in obtaining a new electron is charged negatively. And as the cliche goes, opposites attract."

"This is what an ionic bond is," Bel said with a wide grin. "They get along so well that it's really, really tough to separate them. Usually, an ionic substance will be a crystalline compound with a really high melting point. They're brittle, but can still conduct electricity- only when dissolved in water."

"Bel, don't forget," Fran interrupted. "The brittle nature is what makes them stronger bonds. You can't bend them, or hope to stretch them in any way. Covalent bonds, those are the nonmetal to nonmetal bonds, are the type that you can contort. And remember this, Bel, you can lead some salt to water, but you better have enough if you want all of it to dissolve!"

The Bel sighed. "All right, then."

Fran thought to himself for a while, then said, "Any metal with two valence electrons will form an ionic bond with a nonmetal with six valence electrons, for example, Iron and Oxygen. This one's a bummer. When Iron and Oxygen bond, they make that weird looking thing known as Iron oxide, also known as rust."

"I hate rust," Bel muttered.

"Oxygen really is a heartless element," Fran added. "Since it only needs to more electrons, it's willing to push anyone around to get them."

"Anyone but Neon and the other inert gases: Helium, Argon, Xanon and Krypton."

"That's beside the point- the point is, Oxygen really is a jerk."

"Uh huh."

"With three valence electrons, there are a lot of transition metals that fall head over heels for elements like Nitrogen, Phosphorus, and other elements with five valence electrons."

"We're missing something," Bel noted.

"Indeed," Fran sighed. "We also want to cover metallic bonds. Alloys are compounds between two metals, and they are usually the product of metallic chemical bonds. Metals are really generous when it comes to electrons. Since they all have a low number of valence electrons, they'll all give away their electrons to the point where the original atoms are swimming in a sea of said valence electrons. The bonds aren't very strong, but they are present as solids. Now, this isn't always metallic, but upon bonding with other elements, Iron will often create stainless steel. And, being a stable compound, stainless steel is strong enough to avoid Oxygen's dangerous clutches."

"Hooray for steel!" Bel cheered.

"Unfortunately, that's all the time we have," Fran sighed. "Thanks everyone! I'm sure Phoenix is gonna be proud!"

**-End**

* * *

Ahhhh, man! So I finished this thing at 6:00 AM on Friday... after realizing it wasn't done. X'D

Please Review!


End file.
